You’ve probably heard of the term ‘The Great Resignation UK’, but what does it mean, and why does it matter for your organisation? In this article, Head of Learning at Operis Philip Allen dives into why you might be losing members of your team and how to remedy it.
What the data tells us
Data from the most recent Labour Force Survey published by the UK’s Office for National Statistics indicates that there has been a spike in resignations from the end of 2020 compared to pre-pandemic resignation levels (chart 1). As you can see (chart 2), the rise in resignations was driven overwhelmingly by workers resigning to move sideways into new higher-paying jobs in the same occupation. In plain English, your firm could be losing your best and most talented analysts to the competition.
Chart 1
Chart 2
How to win at ‘The Great Resignation UK’
1. Start with your team leaders and managers
According to pollsters Gallup, the quality of your managers is the most critical factor in retaining your people. Great managers motivate employees to action, build relationships that create trust and make decisions based on productivity, not politics. Gallup’s analysis has shown that the quality of a manager accounts for 70% of the variance in team engagement, so if you want lower staff turnover and greater team productivity, make it your top priority to develop your managers.
2. Provide opportunities to grow
Another great tip from HBR is “pretending your best people just handed in their resignation notices. How would you change their minds?” Forward-thinking organisations have been doing retention interviews for months — asking each employee what it would take for them to stay.
3. Upskill your financial analysts
As the Head of Learning at Operis, you would expect me to mention the importance of training, wouldn’t you? But I can honestly say that providing your analysts with additional training opportunities pays dividends. Upskilling your analysts in Model Review techniques and using VBA to automate complex tasks sends a clear signal that you care about your team. Check out Operis’ Financial Modelling Training courses here.
4. Provide opportunities for lateral job moves
Not everybody wants to climb the corporate ladder or take on additional responsibilities, argues Anca Dunavete writing for Yarooms on the future of work. Many simply want a change of pace or the occasion to try something new. When employees talk positively about lateral opportunities (fresh challenges without a promotion), they’re less likely to quit.
